


Halla Tending

by InquisitorsFancyHats



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Gen, can be read romantic if you want, multiplayer characters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-01
Updated: 2015-06-01
Packaged: 2018-04-02 07:54:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4052317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InquisitorsFancyHats/pseuds/InquisitorsFancyHats
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cillian and Neria spend some time bonding over the unpleasant task of halla maintenance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Halla Tending

**Author's Note:**

> Another DAMP request from tumblr! This wasn't explicitly written for romance, but if you want to read it that way, go ahead.

Neria frowned as she side-stepped a particularly large mound of halla dung. Around her, the clan’s herd of halla munched happily on the grass. “This is not what mages should be doing,” she snapped. “We have those scrolls Keeper Elindra recovered that need to be translated! And that new burn salve hasn’t been perfected.”

“Well Keeper Elindra is the one who gave us this task,” Cillian replied, prying open one halla’s mouth to look at its teeth. It grunted but let the elf look. “We need to find the sick ones and get them isolated. Besides, if it’s something magical or demonic, we can take of it.”

“It doesn’t change the smell.”

Cillian had moved on to the next halla. “Well, you’re not getting us done any faster.”

Neria swore under her breath. Then: “Found one.”

The halla was led to a separate pen, followed by another two by the time the mages had finished combing through the herd. All three had blackened teeth and some odd blisters on the tongue. It was unpleasant, as Neria made sure to remind Cillian as they made an even more thorough examination. 

“It’s not the taint,” Cillian declared, wiping the saliva on his hands onto a nearby tree. “I don’t sense any magic, either. Do you think they ate something?” When Neria didn’t answer, the elf peeked around from the halla’s rear. “Neria, did you hear me?”

Neria was staring silently at the ground. She sighed and looked up, folding her arms over her chest. “I did. Heard you and Elindra talking the other night.” 

Oh. Cillian stepped away from the halla he’d been examining. “So you know I plan on leaving.” Neria nodded, but didn’t make any other response. “I’ve learned everything the clan can provide about arcane warriors. Anything else is going to be… not here.”

“If you leave you won’t be the Keeper’s First,” she said. “You never shut up when Elindra finally picked you.” 

That was true. “It was what I wanted then. And I still do want it. But this is something I want more.” The arts of the arcane warriors had always been an interest, but it wasn’t until recently that he realized that he could do more than just learn about it. He could master it, use it. Bring it back to the Dalish. 

Neria snorted. “You don’t know you’ll find anything. Don’t you think that if there was something more, we would have found it by now? Maybe not us, but the shems. They just love scavenging our ruins.” She shrugged, a scowl twisting her lips. “The only thing you’ll find out there is disappointment.” A pause. “And humans, I guess.”

Cillian closed the distance between them, dropping one hand on the other mage’s shoulder. “Neria.”

Another sigh, but she met his eyes. “I know. You should go. Because what if you find something? Imagine what you could do with all that knowledge!” They had both heard the stories about the elves of old, who had wielded magic like swords and fought against the enemies of the empire. “And if you leave, I become the clan’s First.” 

She sounded entirely too pleased about that. Cillian grunted. “You will. And if I come back empty-handed, you can gloat all you want.” 

Neria grinned, and slipped out from under his hand. “I bet you won’t last a month. You’ll come back, complaining about how you don’t know how to cook food or that the ground is too hard.” 

“Thank you for the vote of confidence, da’len.” Neria bristled at the nickname, but refrained from electrocuting him. 

“But we do need to take care of these halla. And this looks like root rot.” Neria gestured to the closest halla, which was staring at them with a completely bored expression. "We'll have to get them this salve, but they probably won't like eating it." She shoved a jar of the cream into Cillian's hands, ignoring his noise of protest. "You can do the honors and lose a finger."


End file.
